Rubio: Bipartisan Immigration Reform Bill 95 Percent Done

MIAMI (CBSMiami) – One of the key members of Congress so-called “Gang of 8” which are working on crafting an immigration reform bill acceptable to both sides of the aisles said it’s almost ready.

Appearing on ABC This Week, Sen. Marco Rubio, R-FL, said he believes they are close.

“I think 95, 96 percent of the bill is in perfect shape and ready to go. But there are elements that need to be improved. This is how the legislative process is supposed to work. You offer an idea, you get public input and the input of your other colleagues. From these criticisms or observations come out new ideas about how to make it better, and of course you can’t ignore that,” said Rubio.

Rubio said the vast majority of Americans and the vast majority of conservative Republicans are prepared to support immigration reform, but only if the reform measures don’t open the door to another wave of illegal immigration in the future.

The senator added that one sticking point in the bill is how border security changes are structured. He said he’s been very critical of that area and has offered “very reasonable ways to address it.”

“The bottom line is a bill that does not have increased border security, which everyone now I think has conceded needs to happen. I think the debate now is about what that border security provision looks like. And if we do that, this bill will have strong bipartisan support,” said Rubio. “If we fail, we’re going to keep trying, because at the end of the day, the only way we’re going to pass an immigration reform law out of the House and Senate so the president can sign it is, that it has real border security measures within it.”

The senator said that Immigration reform is something that all Americans recognize has to be done because this country has a de facto amnesty policy, a broken legal immigration system that needs to be reformed.

Rubio’s fellow ‘gang member’, Republican South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham said the conservatives who are trying to block the measure will not only doom the party but also guarantee a Democrat will win the White House in the 2016 election.